Case PAK 170604.VAW Violence Against Women/Extrajudicial Killing/Killing in the Name of Honour the International Secretariat Of
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Case PAK 170604.VAW Violence against women/Extrajudicial killing/Killing in the name of Honour The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Pakistan. Brief description of the situation The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by Asian Human Rights Commission, a member of the OMCT network, of the killing in the name of honour of a 23-year-old woman named Khairan, in Pakistan. According to the information received, on 9 June 2004, Khairan was killed by her husband, Ghulam Hussain, at their home in Shahul Sadhayo Village, near Humayoon Town, Shikarpur District, Sindh Province. He accused Khairan of having sexual relations with one of his relatives, Illahi Bux. On the afternoon of 9 June 2004, Sher Mohammad, the victim’s brother, and his two relatives Mohammad Nawaz and Shafi Mohammad, went to Shahul Sadhayo Village to visit Khairan. When they arrived at her house they were asked to wait outside. According to Mohammad, at around 4:30 p.m., they heard the sound of gunshots coming from inside the house; they ran in and saw Ghulam Hussain brandishing a rifle, firing directly at Khairan. Mohammad urged Hussain to stop, but he turned and pointed the rifle at Mohammad and his two relatives, threatening them not to get involved. Hussain declared that Khairan had engaged in sexual relations with Illahi Bux and that he would no longer allow her to live, and then immediately fled the scene. Khairan had suffered bullet wounds to the chest, right shoulder and right leg, and was bleeding profusely. When Mohammad and his two relatives reached down to inspect Khairan’s body, she had already died. They then went to the Jagan Police Station at Humayoon where they filed a First Information Report (FIR NO. 28/2004 Section 302 Pakistan Penal Code). Mohammad claims that the only reason why Hussain accused Khairan of infidelity is so that he may pressure Illahi Bux into paying heavy compensation. He believes that Hussain’s accusations of the alleged relationship between Khairan and Bux are baseless. After the incident, Bux and his family fled to a secure place. The police has made raids and arrested certain family members of the accused, but Ghulam Hussain remains free. Crimes against women and girls committed in the name of honor are gender-specific forms of violence that are either approved or supported by States in many parts of the world. OMCT is gravely concerned by the many reports it has received in the past months of women in Pakistan who are killed by their family members when they are suspected of having committed adultery (see also OMCT’s urgent appeals of this year: PAK 220404 VAW, PAK 120204 VAW, 230304 VAW and 080404 VAW.CC). Male relatives who commit such murders in Pakistan are rarely prosecuted in traditional communities. It appears that behavior of women that is seen as compromising «family honor» is considered a valid reason to commit murder. Crimes committed in the name of honor are generally ruled by the landlords (Jirga-tribal court) in the Sindh Province rather than by the courts of law. The victim’s families are generally not pursuing these cases in courts of law due to the costly and lengthy process of getting justice through the government’s judicial system, while the traditional justice system (Jirga tribal court) arrives at a settlement within a few days. This traditional system has been practiced for a long time and is commonly accepted. However, most of the cases under the tribal court are disposed compoundable under the Ordinance of Qisas and Dayat, whereby the offender can escape punishment by providing compensation to the victim’s family. In many cases of honor crimes, the victim’s family often compromises with the accused, after receiving pressure from society. OMCT firmly condemns these killings in the name of honor and calls upon the government of Pakistan to investigate, prosecute and punish the perpetrators with due diligence. OMCT recalls that the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, in article 4(c), affirms that States should "exercise due diligence to prevent, investigate and, in accordance with national legislation, punish acts of violence against women, whether those acts are perpetrated by the State or by private persons." Action requested Please write to the authorities in Pakistan urging them to: i. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events, in order to identify all those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law; ii. ensure that the prohibition of killings in the name of honor is strictly respected, that due diligence is exercised in the prevention and investigation of crimes committed in the name of honor and in the punishment of the perpetrators; iii. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards. Addresses • President, Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan Secretariat, Islamabad, Pakistan, Fax: + 92 51 9224768 / 9224836 , E-mail: [email protected] • Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mian Khursheed Mahmud Kasuri, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Constitution Avenue, Islamabad, Pakistan, Fax: +92 51 920 2518/922 4205/4206, E-mail: [email protected] • Minister for the Interior, Mr. Moinuddin Haider, Faisal Saleh Hayat, Ministry of Interior, Block R, Federal Secretariat, Islamabad, Pakistan, Fax: +92 51 9202624, E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] • Zaman Khan, Complaint Cell, National Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Aiwan-i-Jahmoor, 107-Tipu Block, New Garden Town, Lahore-54600, PAKISTAN, Fax: +92 42 588-3582, E-mail: zaman@hrcp-web • Syed Sultan Shah, Joint Secretary for Law, Justice and Human Rights, Fax: + 92 51 9203119 • Ambassadeur Umer Shaukat, Rue de Moillebeau 56 (4ème) - CP 434, CH-1211, Genève 19, Suisse, E-mail: [email protected], Fax: +41 22 734 80 85 Please also write to the embassies of Pakistan in your respective country. Geneva, June 17, 2004 Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply. .